Halifax police draw guns during arrest of teen with BB gun

By THE CHRONICLE HERALDPublished July 18, 2013 - 9:50am Last Updated July 18, 2013 - 5:52pm

Halifax Regional Police drew their guns during an early morning arrest of a 17-year-old who was target shooting with a BB gun Thursday.

A neighbour in the 6300 block of Bayers Road called police about “someone armed with a handgun” at 12:34 a.m., police spokesman Const. Pierre Bourdages.

“When we arrived on scene, we did find someone … we believed was armed with a handgun,” Bourdages said. “The officers had to draw their firearms. He was taken into custody and the handgun turned out to be a BB gun. He was shooting targets in his backyard.

“He was warned for his actions but there are no charges pending.”

Bourdages said the incident could have been much more serious.

“It could have been deadly,” he said. “Officers have to react quickly to the threat they’ve seen.”

“Let’s say that this individual would have turned around and pointed at the officer with his BB gun. The officer could have replied with deadly force if they perceived a threat.

“In low-light situations, and sometimes even in daytime, it’s … extremely hard to differentiate a (handgun) from a BB gun.”